Passerine flies into the New Year!

Happy 2014, everyone!

Last year was a busy year– releasing our second full-length CD, touring, headlining a bunch of festivals around the state. Not only did we get to play music a lot, but we got to play music in all sorts of new places, for all sorts of new faces (and familiar ones, too)! All in all, 2013 was a great year for us.

With the end of year, however, there has been some sadness. Our dear Tanya decided that she needs to take some time off from music in order to focus on her family. We know it was a difficult decision for her, but we also understand and respect her courage for making that choice. We wish her all the best and will certainly miss her. Soon after, we got the news that Dave Baker, our bass player for the past two years, has also decided that it is time to move on to other things. We understand that, too.

We’ve heard that word of Tanya’s departure has started rumors that Passerine is “breaking up.” And then Dave… Not so! Not at all. We figure that Passerine still has some miles to go. Change is always challenging, but it made us think about where we are going, musically. As a result, we’ve thrown ourselves into re-working old arrangements and we’ve been having a great time working up some completely new stuff. We’re still Passerine, with renewed energy and eagerness to explore new possibilities. We’re busy experimenting with new instrumentation, new vocal arrangements, and some new musical directions. Dave will be joining us for the next couple of shows, but we’re auditioning bass players and hope to find a new Passerine soon.

In the mean time, we’re going to continue to play and move forward. We’re starting off the new year by headlining Saturday night at the South Florida Folk Festival (January 18-19). On Thursday, January 30, we’ll be playing at the “Evening for Healthy Start,” a benefit for the Healthy Start Coalition of Sarasota, an organization that helps pregnant women, children and families before and after pregnancy– based on risk rather than financial need. It’s a great organization to support, and the event is one of the best annual parties in town. This event is hosted every year by Sarasota Architectural Salvage, and it is always the most fun of all the benefits– great food and community gathering, in the midst of all the quirky artifacts collected in this cavernous warehouse.

At the end of January, Sara and Carmela begin rehearsals for “The Grapes of Wrath” at the Asolo Repertory Theatre. They’ll be playing music as part of that show. The show will be opening March 12 and runs through April. They are really excited about this new adventure (and we’re all excited for them). It should be an amazing show, with musical direction by Tim Grimm. Sara and Carmela both figure that they will be learning new things (as well as new music) that will add some new richness to Passerine’s shows as well.

In February, we’re excited to be sharing the stage at Fogartyville with our friends from Tallahassee, the New 76ers. If you’ve never heard this three-piece family band, don’t miss this chance. That will be Saturday, February 22, 8:00pm, at the Fogartyville Media and Arts Center.

Breaking news: on April 11, we’ll be at Tony’s Studio B in Lakeland for an evening of music. It will be our first time there, and we’re looking forward to it. (It’s a venue worth checking out– they get some great music there, so we’re in great company.)

And then there’s our summer tour– this year, we’re planning to range even farther afield, heading up deep into Minnesota (past Birmingham, Nashville, Louisville, Chicago, Milwaukee). That’s in the works, so we’ll reveal the details once the schedule starts to firm up.

In the mean time, stay tuned for some new music! Our plan for 2014 is to be recording much more as we go along, and to have an EP to share by the time we go on tour. Watch our web site for new music that we’ll be posting.